You can buy my gun

June 17, 2013

I’m a firefighter paramedic with 23 years of service, a gun owner, and a hunter—but most importantly, I’m a father. All I can ask is for a safer world for my children and my community.
I have witnessed the devastation of guns and gun violence in both rural and urban areas firsthand. And through all of it, I can say violence has no discrimination to age, race, creed or job—we can all be innocent victims at any time, just as those 20 children and six adults were in Newtown, Connecticut.
More firearms in the hands of lawful citizens isn’t the answer, as many have claimed. It's not about confiscating firearms, either. It's about making sure firearms don't land in the hands of those who will misuse them. I personally own firearms. And, legally, I can take any gun I may possess and sell it right now online or at a gun show and no one would have to go through a background check to buy it.
I realize it’s hard to stop random gun violence. But one simple step is to ensure that those purchasing firearms at gun shows and those purchasing online will have to undergo a criminal background check. This would close the "gun show loophole" and ensure only law abiding citizens are allowed to make these purchases—without confiscating guns or infringing on any individual American's right to firearms.
A check and balance to make sure firearms are in the hands of legal, law-abiding American citizens is common sense. At the end of the day, it keeps our children, our families and our communities safer.
I support background checks. I'm calling on Congress to do the same.